The Pagan Kingdom or Pagan Dynasty was the first kingdom

Monarchy

A monarchy is a form of government in which the office of head of state is usually held until death or abdication and is often hereditary and includes a royal house. In some cases, the monarch is elected...

 to unify the regions that would later constitute the modern-day Burma (Myanmar). Pagan's 250-year rule over the Irrawaddy river basin and its periphery laid the foundation for the ascent of Burmese language

Burmese language

The Burmese language is the official language of Burma. Although the constitution officially recognizes it as the Myanmar language, most English speakers continue to refer to the language as Burmese. Burmese is the native language of the Bamar and related sub-ethnic groups of the Bamar, as well as...

 and culture, the spread of Burman ethnicity

Bamar

The Bamar are the dominant ethnic group of Burma , constituting approximately two-thirds of the population. The Bamar live primarily in the Irrawaddy basin, and speak the Burmese language, which is also the official language of Burma. Bamar customs and identity are closely intertwined with general...

 in Upper Burma, and the growth of Theravada Buddhism in Burma and in mainland Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...

. The kingdom collapsed in 1287 due to Mongol

Yuan Dynasty

The Yuan Dynasty , or Great Yuan Empire was a ruling dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai Khan, who ruled most of present-day China, all of modern Mongolia and its surrounding areas, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. It is considered both as a division of the Mongol Empire and as an...

 invasions. The collapse was followed by another 250 years of political fragmentation that lasted into the mid-16th century.

History

The kingdom grew out of a small fortified settlement of Pagan

Bagan

Bagan , formerly Pagan, is an ancient city in the Mandalay Region of Burma. Formally titled Arimaddanapura or Arimaddana and also known as Tambadipa or Tassadessa , it was the capital of several ancient kingdoms in Burma...

 founded in 849 by the Burmans, who had recently entered the central plains of the Irrawaddy from Nanzhao Kingdom of the present-day Yunnan

Yunnan

Yunnan is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the far southwest of the country spanning approximately and with a population of 45.7 million . The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders Burma, Laos, and Vietnam.Yunnan is situated in a mountainous area, with...

. Over the next two hundred years, the Pagan Kingdom gradually grew to include its immediate surrounding areas. In 1057, King Anawrahta

Anawrahta

Anawrahta Minsaw was the founder of the Pagan Empire. Considered the father of the Burmese nation, Anawrahta turned a small principality in the dry zone of Upper Burma into the first Burmese Empire that formed the basis of modern-day Burma...

 conquered the Thaton Kingdom

Thaton Kingdom

The Thaton Kingdom or Thuwunnabumi was a Mon kingdom, believed to have existed in Lower Burma from at least the 9th century to the middle of the 11th century. One of many Mon kingdoms that existed in modern-day Lower Burma and Thailand, the kingdom was essentially a city-state centered around the...

 in Lower Burma

Lower Burma

Lower Burma is a geographic region of Burma and includes the low-lying Irrawaddy delta , as well as coastal regions of the country ....

. Anawrahta's successors by the late 12th century had extended their influence farther south into the upper Malay peninsula

Malay Peninsula

The Malay Peninsula or Thai-Malay Peninsula is a peninsula in Southeast Asia. The land mass runs approximately north-south and, at its terminus, is the southern-most point of the Asian mainland...

, at least to the Salween river

Salween River

The Salween is a river, about long, that flows from the Tibetan Plateau into the Andaman Sea in Southeast Asia. It drains a narrow and mountainous watershed of that extends into the countries China, Burma and Thailand. Steep canyon walls line the swift, powerful and undammed Salween, one of the...

 in the east, below the current China border in the farther north, and to the west, northern Arakan

Rakhine State

Rakhine State is a Burmese state. Situated on the western coast, it is bordered by Chin State in the north, Magway Region, Bago Region and Ayeyarwady Region in the east, the Bay of Bengal to the west, and the Chittagong Division of Bangladesh to the northwest. It is located approximately between...

 and the Chin Hills. (The Burmese Chronicles also claimed Pagan's suzerainty over the entire Chao Phraya river valley and the lower Malay peninsula down to the Straits of Malacca.) In the mid-12th century, most of mainland Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...

 was under some degree of control of either the Pagan Kingdom or the Khmer Empire

Khmer Empire

The Khmer Empire was one of the most powerful empires in Southeast Asia. The empire, which grew out of the former kingdom of Chenla, at times ruled over and/or vassalized parts of modern-day Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, Burma, and Malaysia. Its greatest legacy is Angkor, the site of the capital city...

.
The Burmese language and culture gradually became dominant in the upper Irrawaddy valley, eclipsing the Pyu

Pyu

Pyu city states were a group of city-states that existed from c. 2nd century BCE to late 9th century CE in present-day Upper Burma . The city-states were founded as part of the southward migration by the Tibeto-Burman-speaking Pyu, the earliest inhabitants of Burma of whom records are extant...

, Mon

Mon language

The Mon language is an Austroasiatic language spoken by the Mon, who live in Burma and Thailand. Mon, like the related language Cambodian—but unlike most languages in Mainland Southeast Asia—is not tonal. Mon is spoken by more than a million people today. In recent years, usage of Mon has...

 and Pali

Páli

- External links :* *...

 norms by the late 12th century. Theravada Buddhism began to spread to the village level although Tantric

Vajrayana

Vajrayāna Buddhism is also known as Tantric Buddhism, Tantrayāna, Mantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Esoteric Buddhism and the Diamond Vehicle...

, Mahayana

Mahayana

Mahāyāna is one of the two main existing branches of Buddhism and a term for classification of Buddhist philosophies and practice...

, Brahmanic, and animist practices remained heavily entrenched at all social strata. Pagan's rulers built over 10,000 Buddhist temples in the Pagan capital zone between 11th and 13th centuries (of which 3000 remain to the present day). The wealthy donated tax-free land to religious authorities.

The kingdom went into decline in the 13th century as the continuous growth of tax-free religious wealth—by the 1280s, two-thirds of Upper Burma's cultivable land had been alienated to the religion—affected the crown's ability to retain the loyalty of courtiers and military servicemen. This ushered in a vicious circle of internal disorders and external challenges by Mons, Mongols and Shans.

Beginning in the early 13th century, the Shans began to encircle the Pagan Empire from the north and the east. The Mongols, who had conquered Yunnan, the former homeland of the Burmans in 1253, began their invasion of Burma in 1277, and in 1287 sacked Pagan, ending the Pagan kingdom's 250-year rule of the Irrawaddy valley and its periphery. The kingdom was broken up into many regions, with each claiming a king. It would take another 250 years until Burma was unified again.

List of monarchs

Monarch	Reign	Relationship	Notes
Thamudarit	107-152		Founder of Bagan, the first Bagan City State formed loosely with surrounding 19 villages in Yon-Lutt-Kyon area.†
Yathekyaung	152-167	Preceptor of Pyusawhti
Pyusawhti	167-242	Son-in-law of Thamudarit	Renamed the city to "Ar-Yee-Ma-Da-Na".
Htiminyin	242-299	Son
Yinminpaik	299-324	Son
Paikthinli	324-344	Son
Thinlikyang	344-387	Son	The founder of second Bagan city state and renamed as "Thiripyatsaya".
Kyaungdurit	387-412	Son
Thihtan	412-439	Son
Thuyai	439-494	Usurper	Non royal blood three Usurpers (Rakhaman, Mookhaman and Thuyai) seized the throne. Mookhaman reigned for 3 months and then Thuyai won the power struggle.
Tharamunhpya	494-516	Son of Thihtan
Thaiktaing	516-523	Son	The founder of third Bagan city state and renamed as "Tanpawadi"
Thilikyaungnge	523-532	Son
Thinlipaik	532-547	Brother
Hkanlaung	547-557	Brother
Hkanlat	557-569	Brother
Htuntaik	569-582	Son
Htunpyit	582-598	Son
Htunchit	598-613	Son
Popa Sawrahan	613-640	Usurping Priest	Reigned as Usurper
Shwe Onthi	640-652	Son-in-law	Reigned
Peitthon	652-660	Brother
Peittaung	660-710	Son
Ngahkwe	710-716	Brother
Myinkywe	716-726	Usurping son-in-law	Non royal blood, descendant of slave
Theinkha	726-734	Elected by court,royal blood
Theinsun	734-744	Son
Shwelaung	744-753	Son
Htuntwin	753-762	Son
Shwemauk	762-785	Son
Tun Lat	785-802	Brother
Sawkhinhnit	802-829	Son
Hkelu	829-846	Son
Pyinbya Pyinbya Pyinbya was the king of Pagan dynasty of Burma , who founded the city of Pagan. Although Burmese chronicles state that he reigned from 846 to 878, the actual reign, deduced from King Anawrahta's year of ascension, 1044, was likely between 874 and 906...	846-878	Son of Sawkhinhnit	Moved capital from Tampawadi (modern Pwasaw) to current Bagan location in 3rd year of reign. The fourth Bagan city.
Tannet Tannet of Pagan Tannet was king of Pagan dynasty of Burma from 906 to 934. Although Burmese chronicles state that he reigned from 878 to 906, the actual reign, deduced from King Anawrahta's year of ascension, 1044, was likely between 906 and 934. Tannet was king of Pagan dynasty of Burma (Myanmar) from 906 to...	878-906	Son
Sale Ngahkwe Sale Ngahkwe Sale Ngahkwe was a king of Pagan dynasty of Burma . Although Burmese chronicles state that he reigned from 906 to 915, the actual reign, deduced from King Anawrahta's year of ascension, 1044, was likely between 934 and 943...	906-915	Usurper of the royal blood
Theinhko Theinhko Theinhko was a king of Pagan dynasty of Burma who reigned for 16 years. Although Burmese chronicles state that he reigned from 915 to 931, the actual reign, deduced from King Anawrahta's year of ascension, 1044, was likely between 943 and 959...	915-931	Son
Nyaung-u Sawrahan Nyaung-u Sawrahan Nyaung-u Sawrahan was a king of the Pagan dynasty of Burma . Although Burmese chronicles state that he reigned from 931 to 964, his actual reign, deduced from King Anawrahta's year of ascension, 1044, was likely between 959 and 992...  (Taungthugyi)	931-964	Usurper
Kunhsaw Kyaunghpyu Kunhsaw Kyaunghpyu Kunhsaw Kyaunghpyu was a king of Pagan and father of Anawrahta who founded the Pagan Empire. Although Burmese chronicles state that he reigned from 964 to 986, the actual reign, deduced from his son Anawrahta's year of ascension, 1044, was likely between 992 and 1014...	964-986	Son of Tannet	He married all three queens of Nyaung-u Sawrahan
Kyiso Kyiso Kyiso was a king of Pagan dynasty who reigned for about six years. Kyiso was a son of King Nyaung-u Sawrahan but raised by King Kunhsaw Kyaunghpyu. Although Burmese chronicles state that he reigned from 986 to 992, the actual reign, deduced from King Anawrahta's year of ascension, 1044, was...	986-992	Son of Nyaung-u Sawrahan
Sokkate Sokkate Sokkate was a king of Pagan dynasty. The king lost his life in a single combat with Anawrahta, who succeeded him and went on to found the Pagan Empire. Historical sources do not agree on the duration of his reign, given as c. 986–1010 by Arthur Phayre, c. 992–1044 by GE Harvey, and 992-1017 by the...	992-1044	Brother
Anawrahta Anawrahta Anawrahta Minsaw was the founder of the Pagan Empire. Considered the father of the Burmese nation, Anawrahta turned a small principality in the dry zone of Upper Burma into the first Burmese Empire that formed the basis of modern-day Burma...	1044–1077	Son of Kunhsaw Kyaunghpyu	Founder of Pagan Empire
Sawlu Sawlu Sawlu was king of Pagan dynasty from 1077 to 1084. He inherited from his father Anawrahta the Pagan Empire, the first ever unified kingdom of Burma but proved an inexperienced ruler. In 1084, he faced a rebellion in Lower Burma, and was captured and killed.-Early life:Sawlu was born in 1039 to...	1077–1084	Son
Kyanzittha	1084–1113	Elected
Alaungsithu Alaungsithu Alaungsithu or Sithu I was king of Pagan Dynasty of Burma from 1113 to 1167. Sithu's reign was a prosperous one in which Pagan was an integral part of in-land and maritime trading networks...	1113–1160	Grandson
Narathu Narathu Narathu was king of Pagan dynasty of Burma from 1167 to 1170. Narahthu ascended to the throne by murdering his father King Alaungsithu and his elder brother Min Shin Saw. In atonement for his many cruelties, Narathu built the largest of all the Pagan temples, the Dhammayangyi.Narathu's conduct...	1160–1165	Son
Naratheinkha Naratheinkha Naratheinkha was king of Pagan dynasty of Burma from 1170 to 1173. When Naratheinkha succeeded his father Narathu, the new king was greeted with multiple rebellions by the Kudus in the Tagaung region in the north and the Mons of Tenasserim coast in the south...	1165–1174	Son
Narapatisithu Narapatisithu Narapatisithu was king of Pagan dynasty of Burma from 1173 to 1210. He is considered the last important king of Pagan. His peaceful and prosperous reign gave rise to Burmese culture which finally emerged out of the shadows of Mon and Pyu cultures. The Burman leadership of the kingdom was now...	1174–1211	Brother
Htilominlo/Nanntaungmyarmin	1211–1230	Son
Nayatheinkha-Usana/minyin	1231–1235	Son
Kyaswa Kyaswa Kyaswa was king of Pagan dynasty of Burma from 1234 to 1250. Kyaswa succeeded his father Htilominlo and was even more devout. Kyaswa's reign like his father's was largely peaceful but the depletion of the royal treasury due to large tax-free religious landholdings became more pronounced...	1234–1250	Brother
Uzana Uzana of Pagan Uzana was king of Pagan dynasty of Burma from 1250 to 1254. Although his actual reign lasted only four years, Uzana was essentially the power behind the throne during his father Kyaswa's reign, 1234–1250. His father, a devout Buddhist and scholar, had given Uzana full royal authority to govern...	1250–1256	Son
Minyin	1256	Son	Reigned only for 2 months
Narathihapate Narathihapate Narathihapate was the last king of Pagan dynasty of Burma from 1254 to 1287. The king is unkindly remembered for two things: his gluttonous appetite which supposedly required all his dinners to have 300 varieties of dishes; and his panic flight from Mongol invasions. He is forever remembered as ...	1256–1287	Brother	Last sovereign king of Pagan
Kyawswa Kyawswa of Pagan Kyawswa was a king of Pagan dynasty of Burma from 1287 to 1298. Son of the last sovereign king of Pagan Narathihapate, Kyawswa was one of many "kings" that proliferated after the collapse of the Pagan Empire. Though still styled as King of Pagan, Kyawswa's effective rule amounted to just the area...	1287–1298	Son of Narathihapate	Mongol vassal
Sawhnit Sawhnit Sawhnit was a viceroy of Pagan from 1298 to 1325 under the suzerain of Myinsaing Kingdom in central Burma . He was a son of the Mongol vassal king Kyawswa, and a grandson of Narathihapate, the last sovereign king of Pagan dynasty. Sawhnit succeeded as "king" after his father was forced to...	1298–1325	Son	Viceroy of Pagan to Myinsaing Myinsaing Kingdom The Myinsaing Kingdom was a kingdom that ruled central Burma from 1298 to 1313. Founded by three brothers of Shan and Burman descent, it was one of many petty kingdoms that emerged following the collapse of Pagan Empire in 1287....
Sawmonhnit/Uzana II	1325–1369	Son	Viceroy of Pagan